Animal Law Experience Counts

Animal Law is considered a specialty because it is both vast and obscure.  The field includes any type of legal matter, whether it be criminal, civil, administrative or transactional, that affects the rights, standing and/or welfare of an animal or its guardian or third parties.

I have specialized in this field for eight of my 21 year legal career. Animal Law is a relatively new area of the law where sparse case and statutory law exists in terms of defining, establishing and protecting the welfare of animals and legal rights and responsibilities of their guardians or owners.

 Animal Law varies from civil issues involving incidents of wrongful death or injury of a pet, veterinarian malpractice, criminal defense at vicious/ dangerous dog hearings, defense of restricted breed/breed discriminatory law citations, suits for breach of contract or for return of a pet that is being kept by someone unlawfully, other custody issues, and transactional issues such as drafting estates & trusts and facilitating non-profit formation and  organizational governance.

As a lawyer who practices animal law exclusively, with a emphasis on protecting pets, I use the tools that the legal system provides to give animals a voice in both the litigation and transactional forums.  My practice focuses on preventing injury to animals and also making individuals and entities accountable for hurting animals and the damage this causes their guardians.